It is commonplace in the industry for multiple wells to be located on a single drilling site, some as close in proximity as a few feet, while other are further apart. These wells may be worked on simultaneously in some instances and other times in stages. Oftentimes, it is necessary to disassemble one rig setup at a first well location and then move that rig setup to a second well location. The constant assembly and disassembly is a time consuming and costly endeavor, which requires manpower and company assets that could be better allocated elsewhere.
Other moving structures have been used in the industry, as disclosed, for example, in U.S. Pat. No. 7,819,209, U.S. Pat. No. 5,921,336, U.S. Pat. No. 3,921,739, and U.S. Pat. No. 1,001,299.
U.S. Pat. No. 7,819,209 issued Oct. 26, 2010, to Bezner, which is incorporated by reference in its entirety herein, discloses a transport unit and methods of guiding the transport unit linearly and angularly over a surface. The guided transport unit comprises a skid pad to receive a mobile drilling rig, a vertical displacing member engaged with the skid pad, a base operatively associated with the vertical displacing member, and a directional actuator. The base includes a planar element for engaging the surface over which the superstructure is transported, and a carrier for moving the vertical displacing member and skid pad relative to the surface. The directional actuator controls and secures the relationship among the vertical displacing member, the base, and the skid pad for positioning the base in a predetermined direction to engage the surface, setting the carrier to move each skid pad in a predetermined direction across the planar element of the base, and repositioning the base in another direction for movement of the guided transport unit.
The walking platform disclosed in U.S. Pat. No. 7,819,209, discloses lifting cylinders that are not guided and are subject to significant lateral stress during operation, and may not be suited for long term height adjustments of the platform to adapt or raise the platform over a wide range or diverse types of well equipment. In addition, the walking platform needs to support increased weight loads due to the ever increasing equipment needs of drilling operators.
The above art encounters significant fatigue on the apparatus during operation. The side stress imposed on the moving parts while moving drilling structures can decrease the lifespan of these parts and ultimately the longevity of the apparatus. Another issue involves maintaining the transport unit at a desired height for extended periods of time. Yet another issue is raising the transport unit to a height that is sufficient to pass over adjacent well structures, such as BOPs, when moving the rig to another well location. This feature allows the rig to be moved from well to well without disassembling the rig or the well structures.
Accordingly, it would be desirable to provide a walking platform apparatus that provides improved durability, weight supporting capability, sustained operability, and the ability to reposition a rig structure without the need to disassemble the rig structure or surface structures associated with well bores. Consequently, there remains a need for an improved transport platform apparatus. Those skilled in the art have long sought and will appreciate the present invention which addresses these and other problems.
The above general description and the following detailed description are merely illustrative of the generic invention, and additional modes, advantages, and particulars of this invention will be readily suggested to those skilled in the art without departing from the spirit and scope of the invention.
The present embodiments are detailed below in reference to the figures as listed above.